Department for International Development

Sierra Leone: Hospitals

Baroness Tonge: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how they intend to support and promote, as a centre of excellence, the Aberdeen Women’s Hospital in Sierra Leone.

Lord Bates: Tackling the very high rate of maternal deaths and teenage pregnancy is a priority for DFID’s work in Sierra Leone, and the Aberdeen Women’s Centre is providing critical services to many women and girls. DFID is supporting them and other birth centres by providing free life-saving medicines.The Secretary of State visited the Centre in November to see the work they are doing and on Monday the 9th January Minister Wharton met this week with The Gloag Foundation, who provide funding for the Centre, to discuss potential areas of collaboration in achieving our shared goals.

Developing Countries: Sustainable Development

Baroness Tonge: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have an action plan for the voluntary national review under the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

Lord Bates: We welcome this year’s national voluntary reviews which provided an opportunity to learn from other countries’ approaches to delivering the Global Goals for Sustainable Development. The Government will put itself forward for review in due course and will decide the exact process thereafter.

Developing Countries: Sustainable Development

Baroness Tonge: To ask Her Majesty’s Government which government departments will be responsible for the voluntary national review relating to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

Lord Bates: The Global Goals for Sustainable Development have been integrated into departments Single Departmental Plans. The Government will put itself forward for voluntary national review in due course.

Developing Countries: Sustainable Development

Baroness Tonge: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have a cross-Whitehall coordinator for the voluntary national review relating to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

Lord Bates: The Government will put itself forward for voluntary national review in due course and will decide the exact process, including Whitehall coordination thereafter.

Developing Countries: Sustainable Development

Baroness Tonge: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how they intend to raise awareness of the UN's Sustainable Development Goals within the UK.

Lord Bates: The Government will soon publish a cross-governmental report on the UK’s approach to delivering the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) both at home and around the world and will use this opportunity to publicise the Goals. We are also actively considering ways to further raise awareness of the SDGs with the public.

Developing Countries: Sustainable Development

Baroness Tonge: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how they will involve (1) public administrators, (2) state institutions, (3) political parties, and (4) civil society, in the voluntary national review relating to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

Lord Bates: Public administrators, state institutions, political parties, civil society and the public all have an important role to play in delivering the Global Goals for Sustainable Development. The Government is considering when to put itself forward for its first voluntary national review to the UN High Level Panel and will decide the best process for involving other stakeholders thereafter.

Department for Education

Teachers: Resignations

Lord Maginnis of Drumglass: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the ongoing annual additional cost of state school teachers leaving the profession within five years of starting in 2010.

Lord Nash: There are more than 456,000 teachers in state-funded schools throughout England – up more than 15,000 since 2010. The retention rate for new teachers is around 90% and of those that started in 2010, 70% are still in the classroom. The Department’s Teacher Supply Model estimates the number of new teachers we need to train each year. Based on the National Audit Office Report on “Training new teachers”, it cost £700 million to train 33,200 trainees in 2013/14. This report is attached. 



HL_4420_Attachment
(PDF Document, 585.52 KB)

Schools: Staff

Baroness Wolf of Dulwich: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many support staff, expressed as full-time equivalents, were employed in English primary, secondary and special state schools, in (1) 2007–8, (2) 2011–12, and (3) 2015–16, or if 2015–16 data are not yet available, 2014–15.

Baroness Wolf of Dulwich: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many support staff, expressed as full-time equivalents, employed in English primary, secondary and special state schools, were employed as teaching assistants, learning support assistants or in other primarily classroom-based roles, in (1) 2007–8, (2) 2011–12, and (3) 2015–16, or if 2015–16 data are not yet available, 2014–15.

Baroness Wolf of Dulwich: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many teachers, expressed as full-time equivalents, were employed in English state schools, primary, secondary and special schools, in (1) 2007–8, (2) 2011–12, and (3) 2015–16, or if 2015–16 data are not yet available, for 2014–15.

Baroness Wolf of Dulwich: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many support staff in total, expressed as full-time equivalents, were employed in (1) English academies and free schools, and (2) local-authority controlled schools, in (a) 2014–15, and (b) 2015–16.

Baroness Wolf of Dulwich: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many (1) teachers, (2) teaching assistants, (3) learning support assistants, (4) other classroom-based support staff, and (5) other support staff, expressed as full-time equivalents, were employed in (a) English academies and free schools, and (b) local-authority controlled schools, in (i) 2014–15, and (ii) 2015–16.

Lord Nash: The information requested is publicly available. The Department collects information on all school staff employed by state funded schools each year in the November School Workforce Census. The results of each census are published annually. The latest information is for November 2015 and was published in June 2016 in the ‘School Workforce in England: November 2015’ statistical release. This is available online at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/school-workforce-in-england-november-2015 Time series statistics (2005 to 2015) showing the number of full-time equivalent teachers, teaching assistants, and other school staff working in primary, secondary and special schools are published in Table 1 of the above statistical release. Table 3a of the release shows the number of full-time equivalent teachers working in local authority maintained schools and separately in academy and free schools in the primary, secondary and special school phases. Similar information for the number of full-time equivalent teaching assistants, and other school staff working in local authority maintained schools and separately in academy and free schools is available in Table 3b. The detailed breakdown of the full-time equivalent staffing numbers in 2014 (shown separately for local authority maintained schools and academy and free schools) is available in Tables 1-3 of the previous year’s statistical release. This is available online at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/school-workforce-in-england-november-2014

Schools: Inspections

Lord Berkeley: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many schools in England and Wales have not been inspected by OFSTED in the last 10 years for which figures are available.

Lord Nash: The Education Act 2011 provided that schools can be exempt from routine inspection on the basis of having been judged ‘outstanding’ by Ofsted at their last full inspection under section 5. Outstanding schools are exempt from routine inspection as long as they maintain their high standards. There are 106 outstanding schools which have not been inspected in the last 10 years.In addition, there are a number of new schools, yet to be inspected by Ofsted as set out in the table below:Number of new schools not yet inspected by Ofsted[1],[2] Academic year of openingNumber Of SchoolsTotal10642013-141922014-154112015-162902016-17171  1. Open as at 31st December 2016Sources: 2. Inspection data as at 30th November 2016Ofsted inspection data

The Senior Deputy Speaker

Chair of State

Lord Roberts of Llandudno: To ask the Senior Deputy Speaker when the Chair of State in the House of Lords Robing Room will be reupholstered.

Lord McFall of Alcluith: It is expected that the arms of the Chair of State in the House of Lords Robing Room will be reupholstered in the next financial year. The back of the seat will be left intact but its condition will continue to be monitored in case further restoration work is required.

Ministry of Defence

AWACS

Lord Campbell of Pittenweem: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many Royal Air Force E-3D aircraft are operational.

Earl Howe: Two E-3D Sentry aircraft are operational.

Antiship Missiles

Lord Campbell of Pittenweem: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what are the reasons for the early withdrawal from service of the Harpoon anti-ship missile from Royal Navy Type 23 Frigates and Type 45 Destroyers; what alternative is available; and when that alternative will be available.

Earl Howe: The Harpoon system currently carried by the Royal Navy will reach its out of service date in 2018.As part of a process of continuously reviewing the capabilities required to deliver their tasking, the Royal Navy is working alongside other areas of the Ministry of Defence to consider options for a Harpoon replacement.I am withholding further detail as its disclosure would, or would be likely to, prejudice the capability, effectiveness or security of the Armed Forces.

Cyprus: Military Bases

Lord Empey: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the strategic significance of the UK’s military bases on the island of Cyprus.

Earl Howe: The United Kingdom's military bases in the Sovereign Base Areas and separate Retained Sites remain a vital strategic defence and national security asset, supporting our interests in an unstable region.

Department for Culture, Media and Sport

Broadband: Planning Permission

Lord Lexden: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answers by Lord Ashton of Hyde on 29 November 2016 (HL3375), 6 December 2016 (HL3759) and 15 December 2016 (HL3986), whether the 2003 Code of Practice for Fixed Line Code Operators, as amended, applies to the erection of new telegraph poles for the delivery of broadband via both copper wire and fibre cabling; and whether it is permissible for a fixed-line operator which is a signatory to the Code of Practice to have a stated policy of non-compliance with some of the Code's provisions.

Lord Ashton of Hyde: The Cabinet and Pole Siting Code of Practice applies to the erection of new broadband telegraph poles and cabinets for the provision of fixed broadband services which includes copper wire and fibre cabling. Operators who deploy fixed-line infrastructure to provide such services should seek to comply with all of its provisions in relation to telegraph poles.

Home Office

Terrorism

Baroness Deech: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of developments in European intelligence sharing since the 2015 terrorist attacks in Paris and the 2016 terrorist attacks in Brussels.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: We do not comment on intelligence matters.

Naturalisation

Lord Hylton: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether any applications for naturalisation have been awaiting a decision from the Home Office for longer than two years; and if so, why.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: The Home Office aim to process 95% of naturalisation applications within six months. In some cases, applications for naturalisation have been outstanding for more than two years. These case are of a more complex nature where further investigation is required, often involving other government departments and external agencies. The extent and length of time taken to complete these investigations varies according to the particular circumstance of each application.

Refugees: Children

Lord Roberts of Llandudno: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Williams of Trafford on 10 January (HL4287), how many of the 750 children brought to the UK have been transferred under section 67 of the Immigration Act 2016 without reference to the Dublin Regulation.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: Approximately 200 of the children brought over from France as part of the Calais camp clearance were transferred as a result of them meeting the criteria for section 67 of the Immigration Act.

Cedars Pre-departure Accommodation Facility

Lord Roberts of Llandudno: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how they intend to use the Cedars deportation centre following its closure.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: On 21 July 2016, the Government announced its decision to close the Cedars pre-departure accommodation facility. The future use of the site will be a matter for the landlord.

Asylum: Syria

Lord Roberts of Llandudno: To ask Her Majesty’s Government which local authorities in England and Wales have accepted Syrian asylum seekers; and how many have been accommodated in each area.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: The Home Office publishes quarterly figures on the number of asylum seekers housed in dispersed accommodation by country of nationality and UK region in the Immigration Statistics release. These figures do not include those asylum seekers who do not receive Home Office support and who either accommodate themselves or stay with family and friends.In addition for those refugees resettled in the UK under the Syrian Vulnerable Persons Resettlement Scheme the Home Office publishes the number of people resettled, broken down by local authority, on a quarterly basis

Cabinet Office

Brexit

Lord Stoddart of Swindon: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Chisholm of Owlpen on 12 July (HL1134), and in the light of the resignation of the UK ambassador to the EU, Sir Ivan Rogers, what steps they will take to ensure that all civil servants, including those employed in the diplomatic service, will work to carry out the decision to leave the EU.

Lord Young of Cookham: The Civil Service Code requires civil servants to support the government of the day in developing and implementing its policies. This applies to all Government policies, including carrying out the decision to leave the European Union. The same requirement is set out in the Code of Conduct for members of the Diplomatic Service.

Charities: Grants

Lord Stoddart of Swindon: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the answer by Baroness Chisholm of Owlpen on 19 December 2016 concerning the total amount of donations made by the Government and the NHS to charities, whether they have plans to review their policy of not collating this information centrally, and how they plan to communicate to taxpayers the extent to which their taxes are being used to support charities.

Lord Young of Cookham: There are no formal plans to review government policy on donations.